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Trade Studies Towards an Australian Indigenous Space Launch System

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Trade Studies Towards an Australian Indigenous Space Launch System TRADE STUDIES TOWARDS AN AUSTRALIAN INDIGENOUS SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Engineering by Gordon P. Briggs B.Sc. (Hons), M.Sc. (Astron) School of Engineering and Information Technology, University College, University of New South Wales, Australian Defence Force Academy January 2010 Abstract During the project Apollo moon landings of the mid 1970s the United States of America was the pre-eminent space faring nation followed closely by only the USSR. Since that time many other nations have realised the potential of spaceflight not only for immediate financial gain in areas such as communications and earth observation but also in the strategic areas of scientific discovery, industrial development and national prestige. Australia on the other hand has resolutely refused to participate by instituting its own space program. Successive Australian governments have preferred to obtain any required space hardware or services by purchasing off-the-shelf from foreign suppliers. This policy or attitude is a matter of frustration to those sections of the Australian technical community who believe that the nation should be participating in space technology. In particular the provision of an indigenous launch vehicle that would guarantee the nation independent access to the space frontier. It would therefore appear that any launch vehicle development in Australia will be left to non- government organisations to at least define the requirements for such a vehicle and to initiate development of long-lead items for such a project. It is therefore the aim of this thesis to attempt to define some of the requirements for a nascent Australian indigenous launch vehicle system. Conceptual design studies of a space launch system capable of launching a payload of commercially viable mass into orbit are made. The nature of a number of political and economic factors that could slow or stop such a project are pointed out and strategic choices that could minimise these effects are suggested. As a result it is concluded that the putative launch vehicle should be designed, sourced, manufactured and launched using existing Australian resources. Various parameters whose settings are given by discrete choices made such as propellant combination, propellant feed method, engine type and launch site are to be considered and an optimal choice made based on a number of selection criteria. Implications for the remainder of the design such as engine sizing and fuel tank construction where the parameters are based on continuous functions are to be pointed out and various sizing and/or costing implications made. Critical technologies and any long lead items are to be identified. A conceptual outline of the vehicle design is presented. Finally a time line for early development items and a work breakdown structure for a following Phase-A concept feasibility study are provided. i ORIGINALITY STATEMENT I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked at UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project's design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged. Signed: ………………………………………… Date: …………….…23/09/2010…………… Gordon P. Briggs ii Acknowledgements I wish to thank my supervisors Dr John Milthorpe and Dr Tapabrata Ray for their guidance and encouragement. I also wish to thank the University College at the Australian Defence Force Academy for the provision of a UCPRS Scholarship to allow this work to be undertaken. I also thank the staff of NASA Glenn in particular Russell W. Claus who assisted me with the use of NASA-CEA software, Lt Col John “Hondo” Gratton MBE (Retd) for commenting on much of the draft, the “WIFers” for encouragement and to Ms. Denise Russell who kindly edited the text. iii Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................... i Declaration ................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................. iii Chapter 1 Introduction .............................................................................................. 1 1.1 Background to Australia’s Space Launch Heritage ......................................... 1 1.2 Motivation ....................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Scope of Thesis ................................................................................................ 3 1.4 Major Contributions of Thesis ......................................................................... 4 1.5 Organisation of Thesis ..................................................................................... 4 Chapter 2 Literature Survey ..................................................................................... 7 2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 7 2.2 Earliest Work ..................................................................................................... 7 2.3 The German Wartime V2 (A4) Ballistic Missile ............................................... 7 2.4 NASA Apollo Program Launch Vehicles ......................................................... 9 2.5 Russian Launch Vehicles ................................................................................ 11 2.6 European Launch Vehicles .............................................................................. 11 2.7 Japan, China, India .......................................................................................... 18 2.7.1 Japan ...................................................................................................... 18 2.7.2 China ...................................................................................................... 19 2.7.3 India ....................................................................................................... 20 2.8 Scud ................................................................................................................. 21 2.9 Launch Vehicle Design ................................................................................... 22 2.10 Numerical Methods ......................................................................................... 25 Chapter 3 System Considerations ........................................................................... 27 3.1 System Breakdown .......................................................................................... 27 3.2 Basic Vehicle Configuration ........................................................................... 28 3.2.1 Launch Vehicle Mission ........................................................................ 28 3.2.2 Launch Vehicle Concept ....................................................................... 29 3.3 Launch Site Limitations .................................................................................. 31 3.3.1 Earth Rotation ........................................................................................ 31 3.3.2 Trajectory Inclination ............................................................................ 32 iv 3.4 Range Safety .................................................................................................... 34 3.4.1 Range Safety Constraints and Considerations ....................................... 34 3.4.2 Drop Zones and Azimuth ...................................................................... 36 3.4.3 Australian Space Licensing ................................................................... 36 3.4.4 Australian Flight Safety Code ............................................................... 38 3.5 Guidance and Tracking .................................................................................... 40 3.6 Operations ........................................................................................................ 40 3.6.1 Transport ................................................................................................ 41 3.6.2 Launch Campaign .................................................................................. 42 3.7 Loads and Aerodynamic Heating .................................................................... 42 3.7.1 Maximum Dynamic Pressure ................................................................ 42 3.7.2 Aerodynamic Heating ............................................................................ 41 3.7.3 Structural Loads ..................................................................................... 42 Chapter 4 Strategic Propellant Selection ............................................................... 44 4.1 Importance of Correct Propellant Selection .................................................... 44 4.2 Historical Propellants and their Problems ......................................................
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